The proper functioning of some lights and indicators on a vehicle, e.g., most interior lights and indicators can be tested by one person sitting in the vehicle and operating the light switches or checking to see whether the warning lights or other indicators illuminate when the ignition is first turned on. For some exterior lights, such as the head lights, tail lights, parking lights, emergency flashers and turn signals, proper operation can be tested by a single individual by turning on the appropriate light switch, exiting the vehicle, observing the functioning of the lights, re-entering the vehicle and turning those lights' off. This process of SWITCH-ON/EXIT/OBSERVE/RETURN/SWITCH-OFF must be repeated separately for each light group and light function, thus requiring the user to exit and re-enter the vehicle a half a dozen or more times even for a simple passenger car system. With more complex vehicles having more complex exterior light arrangements, even more SWITCH-ON/EXIT/OBSERVE/RETURN/SWITCH-OFF cycles may be needed.
Some lights such as the brake lights and back-up lights cannot be safely tested by a single person without mirrors or other reflective surfaces arrange at the appropriate location because the person must be or should be in the car to energize the lights and therefore cannot or should not exit while the light is supposed to be on to verify that it is functioning properly. For example, the user must depress the brake pedal to energize the brake lights. Similarly, it is generally unsafe to place the vehicle in reverse gear to activate the back-up lights and then exit while leaving it in gear. Generally two people are used to test the brake lights, back-up lights and similar user operated light functions. Thus, a need continues to exist for a system and method that allows a single person to verify the proper functioning of vehicle lights, especially exterior lights while the vehicle remains in a safe state.
Accordingly, it is desirable to provide a means and method whereby vehicle lights automatically turn on and off in an appropriate sequence without requiring the user to constantly exit and enter the vehicle during the test or without requiring the presence of two people or elaborate reflector systems or placing the vehicle in an unsafe state. In addition, it is desirable that the user be prompted to perform the test at regular intervals. Furthermore, other desirable features and characteristics of the present invention will become apparent from the subsequent detailed description and the appended claims, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and the foregoing technical field and background.